Meet the Meadowsweets (Patreon)

quick concept art of honey’s parents, Merry and Maple. Ain’t they sweet?

still sorting out how religion works in FB, but Honey’s parents are wealthy and lead a fairly large church. It’s not a megachurch, they’re not billionaires- but the size of their congregation does allow them to live quite comfortably. They follow and preach a fundamentalist monotheistic religion that believes in a god referred to as “The Master”, a fatherly celestial figure who begat all living things. All animals, but especially dogs, are meant to serve Him, and may do this by doing good works around the world and spreading the gospel.

Merry is Honey’s dear old dad and has the warmest, kindest southern drawl ya ever did hear. Having a voice that pours like warm honey is part of the reason of his success. Merry always sounds like he’s listening to you and has your best interests in mind. He deploys a very strategic sort of kindness, befriending and warmly welcoming people he thinks may benefit him. To the people  cannot gain anything from, well….hm. If the poor single mom waitress serving his table wants a tip, he has one for her- keep your legs shut next time, sweetheart.

Maple my dear problematic milf. She was fairly young when she met Merry, who was married at the time. Still, she was delighted at all the attention and gifts her pastor lavished upon her, so she set out to end their discreet affair and pry him from his wife for good. Maple is very content in her life now, where she‘s married to a powerful dog and is never has to work or think an independent thought. At least, she says she’s happy. Her heavy use of sedatives and diet pills may prove otherwise. Still, she loves Honey very much. Both parents do.

Merry and Maple happily funded Honey’s bachelor’s degree, but became hesitant when their daughter expressed a desire to attend grad school. To them, the first degree was meant to make her seem learned and sophisticated- a perfect, proper young wife for some aspiring young man. They want their daughter to focus on finding a husband and giving them grandchildren, not “pointless” post-grad schooling. Honey manages to convince them anyway, but it all goes tits up when she later comes out to them as a lesbian, unable to continue keeping the secret from the parents she so loves. Her parents flip out. They’d already had reservations about sending Honey to a public university, fearing she’d be indoctrinated into new age degenerate liberalism- and her sexuality announcement confirms their worst fears. They refuse to pay another dollar of tuition and urge Honey to come home and settle down with a man. She’s still young, there’s still time for her to be forgiven and remade. Honey…can’t do this. It’s the first time she’s ever been at odds with her parents, she cannot believe they’d be so cruel and unaccepting about a part of herself she cannot change. She elects to stay and finish her degree, paying her own way. Her parents eventually stop giving her the cold shoulder, but get their icy walls right back up the second Honey so much as hints at her lesbianism. They don’t talk about it. It’s….fine. Honey is fine.